Messy Smokey Eye? Here's How to Fix It in 30 Seconds

Here’s an easy way to create a smokey eye that’s beginner-friendly.

However messy your makeup looks, I’ll show you how to fix it at the end with one simple trick.

If your smokey eyes often look messy, muddy or drop at the outer corners, this technique will completely change how your makeup turns out.

Tools and materials: 

• Eye pencil
• Medium and dark brown eye shadows
• Glitter eyeshadow
• Tapered blending brush
• Small detailer brush
• Eyeliner
• Eyeliner brush
• Micellar water
• Flat synthetic brush
• Concealer
• Sponge
• Lash curler
• Mascara

1. Work from the inside out

My first tip for creating a smokey eye is to work from the inside out, and that means starting with eyeliner.

No smokey eye would be complete without eyeliner along the waterline. I’m using a dark brown shade here but if your eyes are small, you can use a cream color.

If you want something with more impact, feel free to use black.

I like to run a small brush along the root of my eyelashes to smudge the eyeliner a little.

2. Mid brown eyeshadow

For the majority of this look, which is based on shades of brown, I’m going to be using a tapered blending brush.

I’m starting with a medium brown shadow on the outer corner of my eye, and this brush is going to do all the blending for me.

3. Dark brown eyeshadow

I’m loading the brush with the darkest brown shadow and working it in a circular movement again into the outer eye socket and across the outer third of my lid.

Don’t be afraid to blow the color out as far as you need because we want it to fade upwards and outwards, but it doesn’t have to be neat at this stage.

Continue to work your brush backwards and forwards until you’re happy you’ve blended the colors into one another.

4. Glitter shadow

I’m using my finger to press the shimmer shade across my upper eyelid, so it doesn’t look too heavy.

I’m placing it from the inner corner of my eye to the outer corner, working it with a circular motion to blend it over the brown shades. 

5. Top liner

Now I’m using the small detailer brush to apply some of the dark brown shadow close to my eyelash roots.

Next I take a pointed eyeliner brush and dip it into my eyeliner to enhance the dark brown shade.

I keep it thinner at the inner corner and gradually broaden it into a thicker stroke at the outer corner.

I’m also adding a soft highlight to the inner corner of my eye.

6. The clean-up

Using a flat synthetic brush dipped in micellar water, I’m going to remove the excess shadow at the outer edge.

My aim is to create a sharp, lifted finish. You don’t need to get it perfect on the first pass.

Starting at the outer third of your lower lashes, move the brush up and outwards towards your temple.

Wipe your brush on a clean paper towel and sharpen the line.

Clean up any shadow left underneath the line with the same brush.

I’m using the same brush to feather over my base makeup so the line doesn’t look as harsh.

I added some concealer to replace the base makeup that I wiped away with the brush, and blended it with a sponge.

A lot of people will tell you to leave your base makeup until after you’ve done your smokey eye, and it certainly saves a lot of hassle.

7. Finishing touches

I finish the look by curling my lashes and applying several coats of mascara to my upper and lower lashes.

How to fix messy eye makeup

The final look has a beautiful, professional looking gradient running from the outer eyelid towards the temples.

So that’s how you transform a messy makeup into a sharp smokey eye in less than a minute.

I’d love to know what you think of it. Please give it a try and leave me a comment below.